Year two of Red and Blue: A crosstown rivalry
by TheWireTransfer
Summary: This is set in a hypothetical Season 5, focusing mainly on the football aspect of the East-West Dillon rivalry.  Inspired by Bissinger's writing style in his account of Odessa Permian football...new characters are both dreamed up and real.  More to come!
1. Slammin Sammy Meade

Slammin' Sammy Mead was in a giddy mood this morning. Well, he always was, but this time his voice had an unusual whine to it, and some words were being slurred. It didn't take a rocket scientist to know that the poor guy was tongue-tied with excitement with the prospect of something that had not been seen in Dillon, Texas for many many years. A true cross-town rivalry. One side bleeding royal and blue, the other red and white. The only football-related item that the East Dillon Lions and West Dillon Panthers had in common with one another was the UnderArmour logo on their gear.

"Man, I forgot just how wild it can get with not one, but two legitimate playoff caliber teams in this great city of ours. A state championship-caliber group on the West side, the talented upstarts that NO one wants to play on the East side. And even better, we have ourselves one hell of a quarterback rivalry, two young men about as different from one another as you can get. JD McCoy. Vince Howard. And I didn't even get into the coaches! Not a whole lot else left to be said, other than that...I LOVE MY JOB BABY! Woot! Caller #1, you are on the air..."

Eric Taylor quietly listened, as he did every year, as caller after caller rambled on and on. The occasional racist and/or classist remark. A mini-debate over which offensive scheme would turn out to be more effective, the run-and-shoot that West ran, versus the option offense Eric put in for this season. He was pleasantly surprised at the ratio of Panther-to-Lion fans. He expected something in the neighborhood of 80-20. It was looking to be about 60-40. One caller captured the emotional conflict best; "I won a state ring at West Dillon. My cousins won one at East Dillon. My eldest won a ring with Coach Taylor at West, and my nephew plays for Coach Aikman now. My youngest son plays at East. I bleed Panther blue, you understand me, I BLEED it. But I love my son as any father worth his salt does. It's high time we stopped the bickering and just enjoy what we have here. Which is two very good football teams with the potential to be great. Neither of us can escape ties to the other side, because we all are caught in the middle on this one. So just sit back, relax, and watch this amazing game be played the way it should be." Wade Aikman was listening to the same broadcast. He laughed heartily when callers referred to his lack of male genitalia, but grimaced when one caller called him Joe McCoy's puppet. He had done what he needed to reinvent himself and come back stronger and better than ever, and thought to himself that haters served an essential function. Slammin' Sammy burst into even further song when it dawned on him that Eric and Wade were virtually mirror images of one another, with nearly identical backgrounds, prolific careers as high school and college quarterbacks, and private tutorship of the two greatest quarterbacks Dillon had ever seen in Jason Street for Eric, and JD McCoy for Wade. To boot, Wade had been the beneficiary of Joe McCoy's meddle job that got Eric fired from Dillon High despite a 5A championship and 2nd place finish in three years, for reasons related and unrelated to football. "How could I have possibly forgotten about that, thank you caller. As if this rivalry wasn't good enough already!"


	2. Lions' take the field

10 minutes later, Eric arrived. Walking towards the field which was one of the few fields in 4A Texas football that had all-natural grass on it, he surveyed the players out there, of whom there would be about 40 this year, with room being reserved for late-bloomer freshmen or formerly ineligible kids to come out later on. This was in sharp contrast to the twenty-something who were on the roster last season, after walkouts, transfers, and academic eligibility did their damage. He took a look at some of last year's stars, to see who was in shape and who was not, who had grown taller, who was new, and who was missing. One glance at the kids in #5 and #44, his two best players, interacting with one another lifted his mood so much he cracked a sheepish grin. Eric's junior dual-threat quarterback, #5 Vince Howard, was jawing with superstar running back #44 Luke Cafferty, a senior who had overcome hip problems to earn scholarship offers from nearly every Division I-AA program in Texas. He had gained almost 10 pounds of muscle over the summer to meet the demands of the new option offense, and a strong senior season would surely bring some I-A offers as well. Vince, meanwhile, had grown a bit taller, which would surely enable him to better use his cannon arm in passing situations. He was easily the fastest kid in all of Dillon, and his nimble feet and elusiveness as a runner would perfectly complement Luke's punishing downhill style. The two stars of the Lions were arguing over who would lead the team in rushing, a question very much in the air due to the new option offense which would give both of them several carries.

"Listen 4's, I'm the quarterback. Which means YOU only get the ball if I decide to pitch it to you. I have zone read plays where I can run, and I can scramble when we pass. It ain't no contest mayne."

"You're out of your mind Howard. Let's hear you say that when the defenses in this district chew your pretty ass up because you know it'll happen unless you give me the damn ball."

"Oh alright. Haters' gon hate...haters' gon hate. You know what you doin right now don't you."

"Whats that Howard"

"Being a straight up HATER, ain't that right Maze"

Vince doubled over with amusement as those words left his mouth, as the likes of fellow returning two-way starters #8 Rico Baxter (whose big brother Tyronn played for Eric at Dillon), #18 Ryan Maze, and #41 Jay Garza, all juniors, guffawed and dapped away. He could have done without the cockiness, but he loved how Vince, who after football ended, kept busy and out of trouble by suiting up for Lions basketball. Having seen the way football saved his life, he decided to continue his good luck and go out for as many sports as he could, ending up with varsity letters in basketball and track, well on his way to becoming the first bonafide three sport star in Dillon, not just East, since a certain Buddy Garrity, who had lost weight and was hobnobbing with the growing Lion booster club. Vince had a much longer history with hoops than with football, and it showed as he started at point guard for the district runners-up Lions and proved to be quite a second fiddle for Hastings Ruckle, a Southern California military brat who turned out to be an all-district forward. Hastings, a senior who began attending East Dillon last year due to his father's retirement from the Air Force and subsequent return to their native Dillon, was here today wearing #1, coming out for the football team so he could have a better shot at the prettiest girls at East (and West), and at 6'5'', Eric was excited to see if this kid could amount to anything as a tight end. This year's hotshot freshman was #17 Maurice Childress, who was first noticed as one of the best players in the Carroll Park community flag football game. Eric noticed his killer combination of burly build and blazing speed, and his polite and concise demeanor when he was pulled aside to meet the Lions coaches. The kid was made to promise that he would come out for football as a freshman, and he kept his word. He had the body type and talent to play several different positions, and a varsity letter from special teams duty was his to lose. As he made his way onto the field and set aside his coffee thermos, his initial instinct was to call the boys in and break em down, but he held off and allowed a little testosterone fueled skirmish between Hastings and Luke work itself out. The words "hippie", "cowboy", "pretty boy" and "redneck" featured prominently in the derogatory exchange. Eric sighed, this would be a fun season. Made even funner by the very real prospect of a winning season and playoff appearance.

It was time to get to work, however, as West Dillon transplant and defensive coordinator Freddie Spivey (who left the Panthers because of the disgusted and frustrated retirement of his good friend and fellow Panther lifer Mac McGill) roused the boys and yelled, commanded, and shoved them into place to be addressed by Eric. He greeted his team, briefed them of the new pressure that was on them to step up into the stratosphere of a winning team, and formally introduced the assistant coaches. He welcomed the new sophomores who came out to play, as well as those few freshmen good enough to be here today instead of at the inaugural practice of the JV Lions. Last year there was no JV. This year, the amount of new freshmen who turned out was so great that Principal Levi Burnwell sanctioned a JV program, headed by Lions' assistant Stan Traub, who had been upgraded from volunteer to salaried status to reflect his new JV responsibilities. "Vince, Luke, Tinker, get your sunburned asses over here and get your captain jerseys from coach Traub." Applause for the new captains. "Alright captains, stretch em out", and the three obliged and broke the team down while simultaneously trying to squeeze into their new practice mesh's with a giant red "C" emblazoned on them. The reporters were not here today. They were at Herrmann Field today because Joe McCoy pulled strings only he had access to in Dillon to ensure that the Panthers have first dibs on all of the "noteworthy" media coverage. Maybe they would be here next week, maybe not. Either way, it worked for Eric as he had time to whip his boys into shape and look better on camera, as and when they showed up. If all else failed, there was always "El Fuego", the radio station where East Dillon football was the only English-language program. Buddy Garrity was so passionate about the partnership and his broadcast career that it was like fatherhood all over again for the empty-nester, who with Eric's guidance had lost 75 pounds, was Born Again at Lyla's old church, got engaged to a young woman who he shared the experience with, and was drawing pleasantly surprised stares everywhere he went. "HEY RAUL, HOW ABOUT SOME SUICIDES TO LIMBER YOU UP SINCE YOU CLEARLY DON'T NEED TO STRETCH" yelled Eric at a sophomore linebacker wearing #32 who was half-assing stretches and making smug trash talk with some white players. He was hard on the kid because he had been the only freshmen on the varsity last year, and had the speed and the size to play both linebacker and safety. He had no fear, no respect, and it showed both in his violently aggressive play on special teams as well as in his penchant for trash talk and picking fights. Eric was excited to see the kid grow this year.

Meanwhile, it was a watershed day for Eric's new offensive coordinator. Lucas "The Maneater" Mize had quarterbacked Dillon High School to the 2000 5A state title and earned all-state honors. Eric had been his private QB coach. He had not been seen in Dillon since 2006, and after his failed play at a job on Eric's staff, he faced the music, re-entered the life of his son and the son's mother, and became Buddy Garrity's newest employee. Mize had been the top quarterback in the state in 2000 and got a scholarship at UT, but got injured, became a father, and flunked out of school. He had famously lied about being an insurance agent in Dallas, and his secret had been confided only in Eric in 2006, until he returned to Dillon in March broke and desperate for a fresh start, and word of his true plight came out. A lighter, newly engaged, and newly religious Buddy Garrity came to the rescue and, with the departure of his surrogate son, football protege, and showroom manager Santiago Herrera to McAllen to be with his uncle, gave Mize the vacated job. He came knocking on Eric's door for the second time in July, and only managed to find Eric because his old friend Billy Riggins notified him that Eric was actually the coach at East, and called Eric on his behalf. This time, Eric was ready for him with a fresh Under Armour polo and hat, and arranged for him to meet with Vince and Luke, and get them sped up on a new option attack which they would work on together. It was the fresh start Lucas desperately needed, thanks to the game which had provided him the only true comfort zone in life he had ever known or would ever know.

Eric sighed again. Vince and Luke were looking masterful operating the new option attack. Coach Mize was calling in the full gauntlet of plays, from triple options out of the power-I or the pistol, to shotgun zone reads, to play-action passes. They were so in tune with one another that often times Vince audibled at the line and the only other one who actually ran the new play would be Luke. And the sets that they actually ran properly, Vince made the linebackers look like stilted mannequins on ice, and Luke was so physically dominant with his raw power and explosiveness that Eric many times blew the play dead out of mercy. Vince's grasp of the offense was so strong that even when the freshman Maurice Childress got snaps at tailback, the results were similarly devastating. The offensive line showed immense improvement under the leadership of senior left tackle and captain, #79 Dallas Tinker, and were getting better executing the zone blocking schemes of the option with each repitition. Still, Vince and Luke were so good that Eric reckoned they would be doing this even if they had absolutely no linemen blocking for them. Vince was at his best in the zone read plays, some of them run-pass options that Mize once ran as Panthers quarterback, and taught the kids himself. Vince showed the results of his work with Mize on the passing game as passes were completed to the likes of Luke, Ryan Maze, and Hastings Ruckle, who was a work in progress but had bar-none the best hands on the team, and when the pass wasn't there, Vince did his best Smash Williams impersonation in the open field.

The option continued to work to absolutely devastating effect until the sophomore linebacker who ran suicides, #32 Raul Valencia, successfully locked onto Vince's zone read, stuffed his gap, and hit him so hard the ball came loose, and Vince fell down as he tried to get up. The downtrodden defensive players were instantly rejuvenated and Traub burst into his signature excited outburst whenever a big defensive play was made. Vince got up and started jawing angrily, until Eric butted in;

"Vince shut your face"

"no, wait Coach-"

"I said shut up Vince. You blew the zone read first of all, second of all Valencia had his gap and you still went into that one. You weren't aware of YOUR surroundings, HE made a hell of a play, you got hit, so quit throwing a hissy fit. Hell of a play Raul, keep it up. Coach Mize, lets get some more of that zone read"

Spivey sent the next play call into Raul individually instead of the whole group, a symbolic moment for Raul, as his name would now be written in ink atop the depth chart at middle linebacker. Luke carried on like a battering ram with a Hemi engine, reminiscent of the legendary Tim Riggins, but Raul shepherded the front seven into a much-improved performance over the course of the practice, and got into an enthralling on-field chess match with Vince on the option. He was undersized for the position, but in the Lions' Cover 2 defense, you could win with small linebackers provided they had good speed, which Raul had. He was looking to be a good leader for the defense, and proved so adept that Spivey called quarterback spy plays just for him. Eric smiled.


	3. Panthers take the field

Wade Aikman power walked and jogged on the field today. No more golf cart gimmickry. Time to return to some of the positive vestiges of his poor rural youth, because clearly the elite ivory-tower complex acquired in years of practically living with the McCoy's had come back to bite him harder than anyone could have imagined. watched as JD McCoy, wearing #6 this year to signify a fresh start, and to pay homage to Jason Street, made picturesque throw after throw, mainly to senior wideouts #10 Nick Dansby and #80 Darryl Johnson. There were several new starters on defense, as new defensive coordinator and former Longhorn and Chicago Bear great Steve McMichael installed Buddy Ryan's famous 46 defense. The key to the unit was West Texas Jesuit transfer Stafon Williams, a hotshot junior linebacker who was so good that he had earned the honor of being the first kid to wear #33 since the legendary Tim Riggins. He was big enough to be a defensive lineman, but he loved pass coverage as much as pass rushing so he carved a niche as an inside linebacker. Today he was making every tackle to be made within 10 feet of him, and doing so with arrogant impunity. JD didn't dare go over the middle unless he was not near the route. Stafon was honorable mention all-state at Jesuit, a 2A school, and would surely make similar waves in 4A ball this year. He had a defensive end's size with a strong safety's speed, and was on track to be recruited as a blue chip prospect. He was going to be a great one in Dillon blue, and who knows, he could even make a few people forget Tim Riggins.

Wade was not as hands-on as his predecessors, but he interjected enough so the kids knew who was in charge.

"Let's dial up some of those Buddy Ryan blitzes, Steve, get some pressure on the quarterback. JD, stop taking so damn long to look off your hot read if it isn't there. Knox, since when is this a dance party?"

"Tryna stay in front of him coach-"

"This is football not soccer damn it! You have bump and run, so use those hands and stick him at the line, don't let him get comfortable, and keep your head up!"

This team was going to be more talented than any Eric Taylor fielded during his time here, they would play with the kind of fierceness and swagger not seen since the 2000 5A champions, and the Wade Aikman era would finally begin on more than just paper.

The loss to East Dillon had led to some very real humiliation in public circles for him, as he was increasingly viewed as the most damning thing a coach could be seen as: a tool. He spent a month on his parents' property in Wheeler County, during which he realized that he didn't need Joe. Joe needed him, because if Joe forced him out like he did Eric Taylor, then he would lose his own good favor with the boosters who still had not seen through his charade. The first day he arrived back in Dillon, he gave Joe the business. He tore into him the same way Mac McGill had torn into Wade when he quit the coaching staff after the East Dillon loss, though not as loudly, but just as forcefully. Words like "elitist", "superficial", "don't get it", and "priorities" had featured prominently in Mac's soliloquy, and reappeared in Wade's adaptation. The only thing that kept Joe from fighting back was Wade's assurance that he had JD's best interests at heart. He told Joe that he, and he alone, called the shots at West Dillon, and to ostracize him at his own peril. It appeared to work, as Joe has lately not so much as discussed football around him.

He would make or break his career as Panthers' head coach this season. His 09-10 Panthers would be remembered as physically soft, too big for their britches, and mentally weak. He was seen as a weakling for his inability to stand up to West Dillon Principal Tami Taylor, who had would-be star tailback Luke Cafferty removed from school and transferred to East Dillon High, for which his home address was zoned. The boosters had been using a mailbox in front of a vacant lot of land as Cafferty's "address" such that it would be zoned for West Dillon rather than for East, where his family's farm was located. When the existence of the mailbox was brought to Principal Taylor's attention (allegedly by famous ex-Panthers booster Buddy Garrity, in a move to spite his bitter foe Joe McCoy), Cafferty was removed from practice and the very next day, he suited up the East Dillon Lions. Worst of all, the Panthers' season opening win was forfeited. While Tami Taylor was subjected to absolute hell for "Caffertygate", including but not limited to being booed and cussed out in pep rallies and having her property vandalized, Wade was not far behind on the Panther faithful's shit list. After that storm passed, there had been yet another blowout loss to Arnett Mead, 600 yards of total offense conceded to a South Pines team without 5 skilled starters, and episodically horrible clock management which could have cost the Laribee game but for JD's masterclass in the no-huddle. Worst of all, a down-year Westerby had erased a 17 point lead in 5 minutes and forced Dillon to win it in triple overtime, and the Luke-less ground game had gained less than 50 yards six times as a Joe-influenced offensive gameplan had JD hoisting the ball 40 or more times in all but one game.

As horrible and bitter as Caffertygate was for Wade, the writing _really _seemed to be on the wall when former Panther great and rising Texas A&M star Smash Williams, the guest of honor at the Laribee game, left Herrmann Field at halftime of that game, and made the trip straight to Austin where the Aggies had already checked in. He had been excused to come home from College Station to be honored during pregame with induction into the Panther Sports Hall of Fame, but he left the stadium in clearly visible shock and angry disbelief at the dysfunction he was witnessing. So embarrassed was he that when Slammin' Sammy's radio station interviewed him by phone after the following night's UT-A&M game, one where he returned a punt for a touchdown, he had "no comment" when asked about the Lions' prospects for State. This was all before the East Dillon game, where the Panthers were outcoached, outhustled, out-executed, and out-everything'ed by the 1-8 Lions who were so undermanned that 8 kids started both ways. The defense was made to look like terra cotta soldiers by Vince Howard, and was tackling so poorly that Luke Cafferty rushed for over 100 yards in the 2nd half alone despite a hip so severely injured that he had used crutches in school that week. JD had been JD in the first half, carving up the Lions' inexperienced and overzealous defensive backs like he did his turkey the previous night, but at halftime, Coach Taylor adjusted and substituted some speedy offensive players as extra defensive backs, and went to a program of zone blitzes to pressure JD, who got punked and made a mess of the whole thing with 2 interceptions and several negative yardage plays. The Panthers were three and out all but once the rest of the game, and the emotional and strategic boost provided by Cafferty's return combined with Vince Howard's dominance to erase a three touchdown lead in just under 15 minutes. Dillon at least managed to go ahead one more time, only to be foiled by a Landry Clarke field goal at the final whistle. The Panthers would miss the playoffs for the first time in 12 years thanks to two losses, a forfeit courtesy of Caffertygate, and a lost tiebreaker to hated Arnett Mead. Wade's season from hell was over. But the "hell" part had just begun.

While all this went on, Joe actually cared little for winning, as JD's record breaking passing shattered single season Texas 4A marks in yards, touchdowns, completions, and attempts, and he did all this while throwing just four interceptions all year, two of them versus East. And while Wade slaved away in Dillon trying to reinvent himself as a coach, and volunteered his help with the freshman baseball team to take his mind off things, Joe shepherded JD to big time camp after camp. By April, JD had his first scholarship offer from a BCS school, the declining West Virginia Mountaineers. The letter lasted all of one hour between the envelope and the trash. Joe had no time to waste with mediocre programs who didn't even run pro-style offenses. It fared considerably better than letters from system-QB factories like Northwestern and Boise State (ironic given Joe's influence in getting the very same spread offense those schools ran installed at Dillon), which were never opened. Joe was thinking big. USC big, Alabama big, Ohio State big, and with the way JD appeared to have significantly improved his physique, short distance passing, and mobility, his only weaknesses to speak of, Wade expected nothing less. The only thing stopping JD's state records set last season from being shattered once again, was Wade's vow to make better use of the running game. In JD's crosshairs for this season was a more prestigious state record: passer rating. The boy was now so good that some older boosters were convinced that he was already a greater talent than Jason Street ever was. He was even better than Garrett Gilbert, Jimmy Clausen, and Mark Sanchez had been, even as a junior. The fact that JD was only a junior sent an already maniacal hype machine into certifiable insanity, as the mecca of sports magazines, Sports Illustrated, would soon be in town to profile young JD in a piece dedicated to the forthcoming high school football season.

Was JD the hottest quarterback prospect of our time? Can anybody in Texas stop him or the Panthers for that matter? Are the Panthers overwhelming favorites to win a state championship, now that they were in 4A ball rather than 5A? Can they go undefeated? JD took his seat next to Wade in front of the camera, in a good mood that morning thanks to a handwritten letter of interest from Oklahoma, by the hand of Bob Stoops himself.

The reporter asked all these questions, and then some, as JD and Wade sat side by side fielding them.

"Anything less than an undefeated season and a national championship is unacceptable for me and for Coach Aikman, and it better be the same for everyone on our team. As the quarterback and leader, consider me a failure if that is not the case"

"JD's a good kid, he works hard, and as a sheer bonus, he is the best high school quarterback any of you have ever seen. I'm awfully proud of him."

Wade said this with a hint of finality, that it was time for the reporters to stop wasting their time.

"Better than Jason Street?"

"You people have no shame, do you. Alright folks, time to get these kids home, they gotta do this again in the afternoon. Take care now, y'all."

Wade had seized the levers of power and would position himself, his otherworldly quarterback, his championship-caliber team, and his staff as a unified front that would surely make even the most skeptical of Panther alums, like Smash Williams, beam with pride.

The soccer star turned football cornerback, senior #3 Donnie Knox, continued to work on bump and run coverage. On one play, he stuck the wideout Johnson right at the line of scrimmage, hitting him so hard on what was to be a quick-out route that he fell on flat on his back. His eyes locked on JD's, and having taken out his man, he picked up the tight end, sophomore #84 Connor Keefe, who had optioned his route to a slant in Donnie's direction since a weak side blitz had left Donnie on an island and prone to be challenged. JD went to that route, Donnie jumped it and picked off the ball with miles in front of him to run. McMichael giddily dealt out praise and plaudits as deserved. Wade was less than pleased with his protege.

"JD you gotta be kidding me, how you do lock in on the same corner who blew up your hot read?"

"He was in zone coach, he gambled and won, how-"

"No, No, NO. Johnson got put on his ass by Knox, why would he be in zone? You know what bump and run is don't you? How about selling a pump fake? Think son!" And then he saw the ear to ear grin in Donnie's helmet as he panted back to his spot in bump and run, facing Dansby this time. In the play that followed, a halfback draw, he flattened Dansby at the line and assisted Stafon on the tackle for a loss. The Dillon Panthers had themselves a hell of a cornerback. Wade smiled.


End file.
